Hunting Trip
by MooseTalk
Summary: Bifur invites his cousins, Bofur and Bombur on a hunting trip in the woods for a week. This is my version of how Bifur got the axe in his head. No slash. Review please. I don't own cover art.
1. Invitation

**AN: So I wanted to write a story about Bifur… Which I've never done before… I think Bifur is an interesting character. Honestly, I've never paid much attention to him until recently. In fact, it took me until about the 3****rd**** time I watched the Hobbit to realize he had an axe in his head. So I've decided to write my own version of how Bifur got the axe in his head. Hopefully this won't be too similar to a story someone else has already written. If it is I'm super sorry, but it wasn't on purpose I can assure you. **

**By the way, I did actually do research of head injuries… And the side-affects and all that, but I have no experience or anything of how to treat injuries or anything of the sorts so I'm sorry if some of this doesn't make any sense. **

**Alrighty then… Enjoy! **

Chapter 1:

_Knock, knock, knock. _

Bofur set his whittling knife down on the table, along with the chunk of wood he had been carving. He wasn't sure what he was carving yet, but he'd do anything to relieve his boredom. He pushed his chair out and walked to the front door to answer it. Swinging open the door, Bofur immediately smiled at the sight.

"Bifur!" He laughed, gathering his cousin in a tight hug.

Bifur chuckled and returned the embrace. Bofur pulled back, still grinning as he clapped Bifur on the shoulder.

"How've you been, cousin?" Bofur asked.

"I'm doing just fine." Bifur said.

"It's been awhile sense I've seen you." Bofur sighed as he looked his old cousin up and down. He noticed his beard had turned greyer; the skin below his eyes was just slightly more wrinkled. His hair was a lighter shade of black, but it was still frizzy and wild, like he had always seen it. His clothes were perhaps a bit more worn, and his boots had definitely seen better days. But after all, he was still his dear cousin, and nothing could change that.

"Why don't you come in?" Bofur said, parting to the side to let Bifur through.

"I see nothing's much changed with you." Bifur laughed. "You're still wearing that ridiculous hat of yours!"

"Aye." Bofur grinned, placing a hand up to feel the furry brim of his hat.

"Bofur, dear? Who's at the door?" Asked a voice from the living room.

"It's yer nephew, ma!" Bofur called to his mother, Bola.

Bofur's mother came in the kitchen a few moments later, smiling brightly at her nephew. She opened her arms as Bifur flew in to give her a hug. Moments after, she pulled back and looked over Bifur. "Go make yourself comfortable. I'll get the coffee going."

"That would be wonderful, thank you." Bifur smiled.

Soon after, Bombur walked into the room. "Bifur! What brings you here?" He asked as Bifur sat down at the kitchen table besides Bofur.

Bombur pulled out a chair across from his cousin and sat down.

"Well," Bifur began. "I've been thinking about both of you boys lately…" He paused as he noticed the brother's growing anticipation, and he grinned.

"I was thinking of taking you both into the woods on a hunting trip with me next week."

Bofur jumped out of his seat, beaming with excitement. "Oh thank you Bifur! Can we ma? Can we?"

Bola looked uneasy. "I don't know..." She started.

"I'd be on my best behavior! I promise!" Bofur pleaded.

"Well… How long would the trip be?" She asked.

"I was planning on it being a week, but you can adjust the time anyway you want." Bifur told his aunt.

"Bombur, you'd want to come too right?" Bofur asked his brother, interrupting his mother's thoughts.

Bombur seemed to think for a moment, he obviously wasn't as excited as his brother, but he didn't seem totally against the idea.

"I guess, I just don't see what help I'll be." Bombur sighed.

"Now don't be like that." Bifur said. "I wouldn't have invited you if I didn't think you should come."

"I think it's only fair if Bofur goes, Bombur goes as well." Bola stated, setting a glass of coffee in front of Bifur.

"I'll only slow everyone down." Said Bombur, looking down at himself.

"No you won't, I've decided to make this trip a lesson on how to hunt. This is a very valuable lot of information!" Bifur told them.

"I agree!" Bofur declared, "After all Bombur, we've got to learn this stuff sooner or later, and by this way we can learn while spending time with Bifur!"

"I suppose so." Bombur nodded. "Alright cousin, I'll tag along."

"That's the spirit!" Bofur smiled, reaching across the table to pat his brother's shoulder.

"You're sure you're okay with it, Aunt Bola?" Bifur asked.

Bola gave out a deep sigh, and cast a longing glance towards her sons. Finally, she held up her hands. "I'm okay with it."

The next week, Bofur could hardly contain his excitement. He was 56 years old now, he was an adult. He knew he could handle this. He'd been out with his cousin before, but never longer than two days at a time, and never in the woods. If he was truly honest with himself, he was worried about his brother. He didn't know whether Bombur would be able to handle seven days without eating as much food as what was in their pantry. Even so, He trusted his cousin to be wise enough to know if Bombur should go on the trip or not.

Bofur set his things by the front door. He had packed extra pairs of clothes, a pocket knife, and various other things for the trip. He had finished packing last night.

He stepped back and created a mental inventory of everything he brought, and if he missed anything.

_Extra bandages? Check. Extra pair of shoes? Check. Sleeping roll? Check. _

Once positive he was all set everything, he went back into his room to check to see what his brother was doing. Bombur was there, sitting on the bed, letting his legs dangle off the edge. His empty knapsacks were sitting at his feet.

"Bombur? What are you doing? Bifur is gonna be here any minute now, and you're not even packed yet!" Bofur asked, picking up Bombur's bags.

Bombur sighed and shrugged, still looking at the floor.

Noticing his brother's unease, Bofur knelt in front of him. "What's wrong?"

"Well… I don't know Bofur… It's just… What if I mess up? You and I both know I'm not exactly fit for this sort of thing." Bombur said, poking himself a little.

"Oh don't worry about it; this trip is a new experience for the both of us. After all, this is meant to teach us _how _to hunt, and I'm sure both of us will make mistakes. Bifur is a great hunter, and with his teaching, I'm sure the both of us will be great as he is someday." Bofur set a hand on Bombur's shoulder. "Besides, you're agile when you need to be." He smiled.

Bombur laughed and gave his brother a hug.

"It'll be fine." Bofur smiled, and pulled away. "You should get packed."

Bombur nodded, picking up his bags.

An hour later, they heard a knock on the door. When it was opened, Bifur stepped inside.

Bofur and Bombur walked in, along with their mother.

"Ready to go?" Bifur asked, grinning.

The brother's nodded, shouldering their packs as Bola gave them both a hug and a kiss goodbye.

"I'm gonna miss my boys." She said tearfully. Then she turned to Bifur. "Take care of them for me."

"I will protect them with my life." Bifur said, giving his aunt a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "We'll be back before you know it."

**AN: As always… Not very happy with it. I have a million ideas for the other chapters… So they should be better than this one. **

**Thank you for reading. Chapter two should be up soon. **

**-Moose. **


	2. Attack

**AN: Hellur. So sorry about the wait, but here is chapter two! As I said this one is longer, and overall, much better than the first chapter in my opinion. Also, this chapter has violence in it, just in case you don't like that sort of thing, I wouldn't read on. But you **_**are**_** reading a story of how Bifur got that lovely axe in his skull, so violence should be expected. :D **

**I don't own any of these characters. I don't know why I bothered to put that, but whatever. **

**Anyways, please do read on. Enjoy. **

It was late morning when the three of them arrived at the edge of the forest. The forest wasn't far from their town, which comforted the two brothers. It was obvious they trusted Bifur to know what he was doing, but if something were to happen, it was enough to know that they were not all too far from civilization. Wolves were common in the forest, along with Wargs, who were less common, but definitely more dangerous. Of course Bofur and Bombur had never seen one in person, but Bifur had always told them stories when they were young about his encounter with Wargs. Which, while being a hunter, wasn't too odd for Bifur, even if they were rare.

Bofur, who walked silently behind Bifur, noticed his brother step to the side of him, so close they were practically bumping shoulders. They slowed down some until Bifur was further ahead of them.

"M'Hungry." Bombur whispered.

Bofur rolled his eyes. "We'll probably be stopping for lunch in a few hours. You'll make it."

Bombur gave a long and tired sigh. "Okay."

Bofur ran up to Bifur's side before slowing back down to a walking pace. "So where are we goin' cousin?" He asked.

"For today, we're going to head further into the forest and set up camp. Then tomorrow mornin' we'll set out to do some real hunting."

"Sounds good." Bofur nodded.

Later into the day, Bifur stopped at a cleared out area of the forest. They hadn't been walking long, but the terrain was rough and exhausting. Bofur had tripped on a stump that was hidden from view and landed on a thorn bush earlier in the morning, and had been in an even amount of pain since then.

"Let's stop and eat lunch. I'm sure you won't mind the break, right boys?" Bifur smiled as his cousins gave relieved sighs and plopped down on the grass next to each other. He also had clearly heard Bombur's sad whispers to his brother of, 'I'm hungry' throughout the better part of the day.

Bofur and Bombur set down their packs and rummaged through the food bags their mother had given them. Once they opened the bags, the aroma of homemade sandwiches quickly filled the air.

Very soon, the three of them were chatting and eating happily. Although Bombur was slightly disappointed that his sandwich didn't last longer, and Bofur was unwilling to part with his own, causing them to bicker until Bifur put a quick end to it. After that was over, Bifur began to talk about his past experiences of hunting in the woods alone.

"I remember the trip I took when I was just a lad like the both of you." Bifur smiled fondly, lying in the grass with his elbow there to prop him up. "My mother always called me a fool for hunting out here alone, but it was something I loved doing, and still do… I almost gave up on it awhile back, too, and I'm thankful I did not."

"What happened?" Bofur and Bombur asked in unison, making Bifur grin.

"Well…" He started, "I was tracking a stag in the woods by myself one day. I wandered farther into the woods then I normally would've. I was only 42 at the time. Not even an adult quite yet."

"Did you find the deer?" Bofur asked excitedly.

"Well… No…" Bifur laughed. "I tracked it at least halfway through the forest, until I came to a clearing. I was tired of searching for the deer, that I decided I should climb to the top of a tall tree to see if I could spot it from up there."

"I'm terrible at climbing trees…" Bombur mumbled as Bifur continued his story.

"So I climbed the tallest tree I could find… It had sturdy enough branches that I knew I would be able to climb." Bifur said, "I remember climbing very close to the top branch. The limbs of the tree began to get wobbly and unstable. I looked around for any sign of the deer whilst holding tightly onto the tree trunk and branches. After quite some time, I couldn't see anything, so I climbed back down. About halfway down the tree, my hands slipped from the branch."

He paused as he received wide eyes and gasps from the two brothers.

"Lucky, I hit branches falling to slow me down." Bifur chuckled. "I fell more than 20 feet from the tree, and landed hard on the ground."

"Oh no!" Bofur and Bombur both exclaimed.

"As soon as I landed, I heard a very loud, _'crack!'_" Bifur continued, "I knew immediately my wrist was broken, I felt it too. I knew I had to get home, but I was about an hour away from home, and it would definitely take me to get back due to my injury.

"That's awful!" Bofur cried.

Bifur nodded. "It took ages, but by nightfall, I got home. My mother and father were worried sick of course, and they forbid me from hunting in the woods for months. In fact, I wasn't able to, because of my wrist. I had broken it in two places, and it took a lifetime to heal properly."

"So that's why you almost gave up on hunting?" Bombur asked.

Before Bifur could respond, a distant howl broke the conversation.

"What was that…?" Bofur whispered, after noticing Bifur immediately tensing up upon hearing the howl.

Bifur shuffled around the packs silently. He gripped his spear tightly and shot up straight like a rod. He listened intently, as his head turned from side to side like a dog listening for its prey.

"Bifur?" Bofur asked.

Bifur shushed him almost immediately after he spoke. Nothing but the chirping of birds could be heard for minutes.

Another howl shot out from not to far away, it seemed. The noise was low, loud, and threatening. Bofur wondered what it could be, and he was thankful that it was still day time, whatever the animal that's causing the sound may be.

"There it is again." Bifur growled, shuffling on his feet, looking towards the source of the sound.

"Was that a wolf?" Bofur asked.

"No." Bifur snapped. He looked into the distance. "That was not a wolf."

Suddenly, a large, dark shape slowly crept in towards them. It appeared to be a wolf that had multiplied many times in size. Its eyes were pure black; its highlights were nowhere to be found. Its mouth was gaping open, foam dripping from its shredded lips.

Immediately Bifur knew what it was: a Warg. He cursed and took a step backwards towards his younger cousins. "Both of you get behind me! Get behind me now!" He yelled, and Bofur slid in between Bifur and Bombur, making sure his brother was behind himself.

As the creature stalked its way forwards out of the shadows of the woods and into focus, they soon realized the animal was not alone. An Orc was saddled upon it, its eyes, bloodshot and dark, were fixated on the three dwarves. It had a sick grin plastered on its hideous face.

Bifur held tightly onto his spear with one hand, and motioned Bofur and Bombur to move with the other.

"Bofur! Bombur! Get out of here now!" Bifur shouted. His voice was steady despite their situation. The brothers had no experience fighting, that much he knew. He had brought along small weapons inside his pack for the both of them, but by the time they could get his bags they'd be killed. He could not risk their lives against these foul creatures.

"What?!" Bofur asked, shaking his head. "We're not leaving you!"

"Go now! There's no time to argue!"

Just then, the Orc charged forwards on the Warg. The Warg knocked Bifur to the ground, but luckily, Bifur still held his spear with an iron grip. He turned over quickly, lifted himself off the ground, rushed forwards, and thrust his spear multiple times into the Warg's throat. The creature's loud cries of pain pierced the warm summer air. The Orc toppled off his ride, but made a fast recovery. He swung his weapon wildly at Bifur and his cousins. Bofur had already managed to get Bombur to climb a tree. He didn't know if that was the best idea, but he was out of the way of danger for the time being.

Bifur rushed in with enough rage to match the Orc's. He jabbed his spear forwards, but the Orc turned its body to the side and dodged the attack. It grabbed Bifur's arm, twisting and bending it backwards to the point where there was a loud and sickening _pop _sound. Bifur dropped his spear and cried out in pain. The Orc used his weak state as an opportunity. He kneed Bifur's stomach with a tremendous amount of force. Bifur collapsed onto the ground, holding onto his stomach with his good arm and hacking onto the ground.

The Orc began to laugh a low and mangy laugh, however, it was cut short, and it soon turned into a cry of pain. While it had been distracted, Bofur had had time to fumble around for his pocket knife. He swung his arm forwards and jabbed the blade of the knife into the back of the Orc's knee. The Orc screamed and crumpled to the ground. Bofur tried to get the knife back, but it was stuck too deep into its skin. He searched the ground for Bifur's spear. Once he found it, he turned around, only to be greeted by a second and much larger Orc that he had not seen before. Bofur was merely a speed bump for the creature. It grabbed Bofur's throat, cutting off his air supply within a few seconds. Bofur dropped the spear and gripped the larger creature's hand, trying to make it let go.

The Orc laughed, practically spitting in Bofur's face. "Yer a fighter, ain't ya?" It grinned, and Bofur formed something of a scowl.

Then it released its grip and threw Bofur to the ground. Bofur tried to stumble away, but the Orc shoved him to the ground, and pinned him there.

"Now not so fast, ya rat! I wanna have some fun wit' cha first!"

Bofur tried to squirm from the beast's grip, but it was too strong. It dug its sharp claws into Bofur's shoulders as it held him in place. The Orc took out one of its throwing axes, and held it up to Bofur's throat, slowly tracing his chin line.

"Ye should learn ta behave yerself!" It taunted, "I think I'll teach ye a lesson fer today."

The Orc delicately started dragging the sharp axe across Bofur's left cheek, tearing through his skin. It made him start to struggle against its hard grip, whimpering when the Orc only held on tighter.

"Aww… What's that? Am I makin' ye sad?" It asked in mocking sympathy, its evil eyes looking into Bofur's. "If ye beg, then maybe I'll stop."

Bofur hardened his face, forcing himself to look as strong and placid as possible, but he certainly did not feel it.

"Oh… Bad choice little dwarf." It gave a sly grin, showing his crooked and jagged teeth.

It lifted up its axe to cut the other cheek, but before the Orc could induce anymore pain, a sharp spear pierced its back, going straight through his heart. It dropped the axe and slumped over on the ground next to Bofur.

Behind the Orc, was Bifur, wobbling a little on his legs as he dropped his spear and knelt down next to Bofur. Bofur couldn't help the tears that made their way into his eyes.

"Bifur…" He spoke, reaching to his cousin and wrapping his arms around him. Bifur used his good arm to hug back. Bofur hid his face in Bifur's neck as he was on the verge of crying.

"It's okay Bofur. I got'cha." Bifur grinned softly, patting Bofur's back. "I ain't giving up on a fight that easily."

Bofur nodded, and pulled back when he realized the blood he had gotten on Bifur's jacket.

"Where's Bombur?" Bifur asked, suddenly worried.

Bofur's eyes grew wide. "Bombur?!" He yelled, cursing himself for not remembering which tree he had him climbed up.

Bifur stood up and turned around, searching the woods.

Yet, unknown to the dwarves, the Orc that had been stabbed in the knee by Bofur, had made a slight recovery. It had taken its small throwing axe out while the others were distracted by the second Orc. Its knee was in screaming pain, and it was almost impossible to hold the axe right, but it managed to struggle for a fight. Finally, when it saw the black and grey-bearded dwarf stand up and kill the Orc, it fueled the rage that was burning inside of it. The dwarf stood up, and paid no attention to the wounded Orc. It gripped the handle of the axe, held it up in the air, and threw it across the sky.

That is when everything changed.

A loud, _**crack**_sound was heard, and Bifur slumped to the ground.

B-

**AN: OHHH! DUN DUN DUNN… Sorry for the cliff hanger. Especially after that rather long wait. I hope you liked this chapter! It took a long time to write, and honestly, I re-wrote it like 3 times. I'm pretty happy with this one, but let me know what you thought! All reviews are welcome. I accept them all. **

**Hope you liked this one too Mouse, I know you were expecting it, sense you kept asking, "IS IT UP YET? IS THE STORY UP?" **

**Just kidding lolz. :D **

**No seriously though.**

**Well yep. Next chapter should be up soon… I hope… **

**Also, yes… I just couldn't resist that little nod to AUJ. The whole conversation between Bilbo and Bofur in the movie is what sparked it. **

**Bilbo: "Was that a wolf? Are there wolves out there?" **

**Bofur: "Wolf? No, that was not a wolf." **

**It also kind of explains why Bofur sounded pretty frightened when he said that. **

**(Yes I know Wargs are scary anyways, lol) **

**-Moose. **


	3. Decisions and Panic

**AN: Hellur. Sorry this took so stinkin' long to come out. I was busy with school and battling with un-inspiration all together, so I blame my brain for this one. I hope this came out as good as you were expecting it to from how long the wait was. Also, sorry if this was a little short. I actually finished writing this when I was over at my grandma's for Easter. So when I should've been socializing with family… I was writing… Because I had too many ideas for this story. By the way, this one is a little bloody. Just a warning… If you don't like mildly gory things, don't read on. **

**Enjoy!**

**xxxxxxx**

Everything seemed to stop at that moment. Bifur froze in his tracks as the small throwing axe embedded itself in his skull. The cracking sound it made was a loud and heavy _thud_, and it could've been heard all throughout the forest. Bifur swayed on his feet as his knees gave out from under him, and he fell backwards onto his back. Bofur was unaware of the Orc who had thrown the axe; he was completely focused on finding his brother. That is, until he heard his cousin slump to the ground. He spun around, only to find Bifur's head bleeding excessively. Bofur's heart sunk to his stomach.

The Orc began to belch out a deep laugh, despite the pain that was still radiating from its knee. Without stopping to inspect the wound, Bofur dropped to the ground, and picked up Bifur's spear that was lying beside his crumpled body. With as much rage and hatred he had ever felt in his entire life, he charged at the Orc with the spear gripped tightly in his hands. His feet seemed to move without him even thinking about it. He pulled together every scrap of energy left in him, and jabbed the spear straight through the Orc's throat. Its laughs halted, and turned into gurgles and horrible choking noises, until finally, its life was taken from it. Bofur didn't mind the fact that that was the most violent and goriest thing he had ever done. The Orc killed Bifur.

At least, that's what Bofur thought.

He didn't bother getting the spear back. It was covered in Orc blood. He didn't believe it was worth it now. Bofur lifted up a blood soaked hand to push back his hat that had fallen over his eyes. He would've dropped to his knees, and passed out there, had he not forgotten that Bifur lay in a pool of blood behind him just a few feet away. With all his might, he made cautious steps towards Bifur.

He let out a shaky breath as he fell to his knees next to his cousin. The axe was almost drowned in blood. At this point, Bofur was on the verge of throwing up the sandwiches that he had eaten earlier, but he fought back that urge. He let the tears he didn't know he had been holding back flow down from his eyes freely. A strangled sob came out in waves of moans from his mouth as he covered his face with his hands. His cousin was dead. Bifur was dead.

He didn't know why, but a thought came to his mind in a split second.

_Maybe he isn't dead. _

_Shut up. _He immediately scolded himself. He was a fool to give himself false hope.

On the other hand, he knew he couldn't give up so quickly. He wiped his wet hands on his coat, parted Bifur's beard to the side, and held two fingers to his neck. After what felt like forever, a pulse was felt. Bofur waited until another one was felt. Even after eight or so pulses, he let out something that could've been a laugh. He was relieved. The pulse was slower than ever, but his heart was beating by some miracle.

Wiping the tears from his eyes, he set to work. He ripped off his scarf, and dabbed it to the skin of Bifur's skull, being careful not to touch the axe. The blood had covered the better part of Bifur's head, and it was slowly staining his black and grey hair to a crimson color. The blood was flowing freely, and Bofur began to panic. _There was so much blood._ He cradled the back of Bifur's head in his hands, and carefully lifted it off the ground. He wrapped his scarf around his head several times tightly before tying it in the front in hopes of stopping the bleeding. It stained the scarf in a matter of seconds. Over the course of he next few minutes, Bofur checked Bifur's pulse every few seconds. He didn't know how Bifur was still alive, but he did not question anything at the moment. Bifur wouldn't last long if he didn't do something quick, and that did not help his growing panic.

Suddenly, the sound of breaking branches and the crunches of leaves made Bofur's head spin around to see what had happened. He stood up, still staying at Bifur's side. There he saw a large body lying sprawled out on the forest floor. He stood on his tip-toes and saw a large, ginger colored braided mustache. _Bombur. _

He ran to his brother, who was lying on his back, moaning a little.

"Bombur?! Are you okay?" Bofur asked. The last thing he needed was another injured family member.

"Yeah… I'm alright…" Bombur groaned, pushing himself to a sitting position. "I fell from the tree. Kind of like Bifur did when he was young. Remember that story? So did all of the bad guys die? Where's Bifur? I couldn't see everything from the tree. Oh—what happened to your cheeks? They're all bloody…I thought I saw you kill that one Orc. I've never seen you do anything that violent before-"

"Bombur!" Bofur yelled, cutting his brother off from saying anymore. He knew that when Bombur was nervous, he talked excessively. Bofur didn't have time to answer his nonsense questions. He needed to get Bifur help, and very soon.

Bombur stopped talking, and stared into Bofur's watery eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Bifur… H-he needs help. We have to get help, Bombur. W-we _have_ to. He needs…" Bofur couldn't help but say the same things over again.

Bombur listened to his usually calm and happy older brother ramble on like a scared child.

"Bofur. What happened?" Bombur demanded.

"T-There's an axe in his head. The Orc threw an axe, and it hit Bifur's head." Bofur said in one breath.

"Oh…" Bombur breathed.

Bombur leapt to his feet, and followed Bofur aimlessly to Bifur's body. Bombur let out a cry of despair as he realized that Bofur was telling the truth. Suddenly, he turned his back, fell to the ground, and let go of everything he ate for lunch. Bofur tried to ignore the disgusting smell of his brother's vomit that made him want to throw up as well. He knelt down next to his cousin's limp and bloodied body, parted his large beard aside and put two fingers to his neck to check his pulse. After waiting a second or two, he felt a pulse under Bifur's skin and sighed with relief. _He's still alive._

After Bombur was finished throwing up, he turned to his brother.

"How are we supposed to help him, Bofur?" He managed to say breathlessly. "We're miles away from the nearest doctor, and he'll most likely bleed out by then…"

"Well we can't just sit here and do _nothing_!" Bofur shouted, before realizing he was scaring Bombur by the tone of his voice. It was so unlike his usual optimistic self. He took a deep breath and steadied himself before speaking again.

"We have to try… I'm not giving up now… Not yet. Not while he still lives, Bombur." Bofur said at last.

"I wasn't suggesting we give up… But, what are we gonna do?" Bombur asked, searching his brother's eyes. "Should we try to pick him up and bring him back, or should one of us run back and get help?"

Bofur thought for a minute. Trying to carry Bifur would be hard and slow. It might take them an hour to get back, maybe more if they were to do that. Bifur would surely die by then. If one of them ran back and got help, (preferably Bofur) Bifur might die by the time help got to him. Bofur eventually decided they had a better chance of saving Bifur if he ran and got it help. Even if he was sore, tired, bleeding and distraught, he was quicker and more agile than Bombur, and he would only be slowed down by Bifur's heavy weight.

"I'll run back and get help." Said Bofur.

Bombur's face contorted into a frown and his gaze soon fluttered to the floor, but he nodded anyways. "Um… Okay."

"What is it?" Bofur asked.

"I just, I don't want to be split up after we were just attacked by Orcs and Wargs. But if you think Bifur has a better chance that way, then I won't argue about it."

The last thing Bofur wanted was to leave his little brother in the woods without him, but there was no other option right now. He went over to the Orc that he had killed, who still had the spear in its throat. He put his foot on the beast's chest, and with all his strength, pulled the boar spear out of its neck. He turned around, took Bombur's hand and wrapped his fat fingers around the handle of the spear, making him hold onto the weapon.

"Take this." Bofur instructed in a soft voice. "Try and stay out of sight, and don't let anything get near you or Bifur, no matter what the creature may be. Keep checking Bifur's pulse every few minutes to see if he still lives. If you _do _see an Orc, Warg, or anything of the sorts, don't fight it unless you have to. Climb a tree if you can. If Bifur could not handle them, we can not either. I'm not going to risk losing you too." Bofur put a hand on Bombur's shoulder.

Bombur did not look convinced he could handle the task, but he nodded again. "Okay…"

Bombur embraced Bofur, and he did not hesitate to hug back. They held on like the other was a life-line of some sort. Bofur pulled away sooner than he would've liked, but time was running out.

"Be careful." He said. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

"You too." Bombur responded in a voice that was just above a whisper. He watched Bofur adjust his furry hat before turning on his heels and speeding off.

**xxxxxxx**

**AN: Daaawww… Brother love! I kind of envisioned the hug to be similar of the one in Battle of the Five Armies when Bofur came back to Erebor and Bombur was just like, BRO! GIMME A HUG! Only this one would be more somber and more like a, our-cousin-might-die-a-horrible-death-today sort of hug. **

**Sorry I ramble on when I talk about them…. **

**Fun fact! Bombur talking excessively when he was nervous is actually something I do. Whenever I'm very nervous I just cannot stop talking. It either calms me down or makes me even more nervous. I don't know. Anyways. Please leave a review for me! It helps me a lot. I love reading reviews, they make me so happy. Also, why don't you leave a suggestion for me? That would be greatly appreciated. Even though I do have an idea of where I want this story to go, suggestions are always welcome. **

**Thank you for reading! And I hope you liked this too Mouse. I know you were waiting for this. **

**-Moose**


	4. Getting Help

Bofur didn't dare look back as he ran. He pushed the thought of Bombur being practically alone in the woods without any fighting skill whatsoever out of his mind. _Just keep running. Just run. _Suddenly, the tip of his boot caught on the edges of a protruding root that was partly hidden from sight. He tripped and stumbled forwards. Unfortunately the flat land ended there, and a steep slope followed straight after the root. Bofur tumbled down head over heels, hitting bumps and rocks on the way. Eventually he slowed to a stop and was once again on flat land.

Moaning, he struggled to push himself off the ground. His pants and legs were scraped and he could already tell bruises were forming. Bofur swayed from side to side as he struggled to keep his vision straight. He laid his hands on the sides of his head and stayed still for a few seconds. It would be no use trying to run again if he would just fall back down. Once certain he could go back to sprinting, he stood back up and took off, struggling to ignore the harsh pain.

_Bifur could already be dead. _A cruel part of his brain thought, and seconds later he cursed at himself for thinking like that. As he ran, the opening of the forest was nowhere in sight. The branches and leaves of the trees smacked against the sides of his face like miniature whips as he crashed through them.

_Think of something happy. _Bofur told his panicking self. Yet every thought that came to his mind only made him more anxious.

_Mother. Think of her. _He thought. _She doesn't know this has happened yet. What will she say when she finds out? How will she react? _

_No. Think of something else. _

_Bombur. Bombur is left alone with our bleeding cousin. Nothing happy about that. _

However, that thought stopped him. Bombur was his brother. The person he loved more than anyone in the world. He had to stay strong for him, that much he knew. He remembered telling Bombur that everything would be fine before they left for the trip, and a surge of guilt flew through him, until he hardened himself. He had to make it.

Bofur forced every fiber of his being into running as fast as he had ever ran in his life. _Right leg, Left leg, Right leg, Left leg, Right leg, Left leg. Don't give in. Don't give up._

That's all he could manage to think for the longest time. 

His lungs and legs were screaming for a rest, but he refused to stop. Then almost like a miracle, the edge of the forest was spotted in the near distance. If he had the energy to smile, Bofur felt like he would have. The sight did not make him slow down, but fueled the strength in him to move faster. Soon after noticing the exit, he rushed through the edge of the woods, almost tripping over his own clumsy and tired feet. He kept sprinting until he reached the closest town, which was within close proximity, thankfully. The town was mostly occupied with humans, but dwarves came in as merchants occasionally. He was acquainted with hardly anyone in the town, be it they were humans or even dwarves.

Bofur hardly notice everyone's eyes that looked at him as if he had an extra head as he stumbled around. He knew his disheveled appearance wasn't pleasant for anyone to see, but he could hardly care less. He only had one thought on his mind now.

_Where do I find a doctor?_

Although he'd normally know where to look, he felt as if his whole mind had been turned to mush.

An old dwarf with a white braided beard and long eyebrows looked up from behind his store in the market place as Bofur frantically looked around. He raised a bushy eyebrow as Bofur gasped for breath as he hunched over, wheezing.

"Are you okay there?" The dwarf asked.

"A d-doctor-where do I find the nearest doctor?!" Bofur yelled in an exasperated voice that was a bit louder than he would've liked it to be.

"Yeah, you could use a doctor." A human man said with a scoff, and a few girls behind them giggled.

Bofur was far from a laughing mood. He shot them a cold glare and they quickly silenced.

"A doctor eh? Turn left off of this street and go into the third building you come to on the right. There outta be a few doctors in there, but careful, they're mostly tending to the ill."

Bofur nodded as soon as the old dwarf finished speaking, and ran around the corner. He looked to the right and counted three buildings down just like the dwarf had said. He swung open the door and stepped in without bothering to knock first. Immediately a strong stench flushed through his nose and made his eyes water. At least ten people were lying on the floor, coughing and groaning. It was cramped and crowded, and he thought as if he had made a mistake going in. Bofur went to lift his scarf so it would cover his nose and mouth, but found it was missing. He sighed heavily as he remembered taking it off and wrapping it around Bifur's injured head.

"H-hey—you!" voice called from the back of the room, jolting Bofur from his thoughts. A short and stocky man with shoulder length brown hair jabbed his finger straight towards Bofur. The both of them locked eyes. Bofur didn't recognize him, but then again he did not know many of the humans living in the Blue Mountains.

"You can't be in here! Someone get him outta here!" He called.

A girl Bofur assumed to be the doctor's assistant put a hand on his shoulder, and tried to lead him back out of the door. "Please, you need to leave." She said to Bofur.

He quickly squirmed out of her grip, and fought to get closer to the stocky man. "_No!_" Bofur yelled. "My cousin needs help! Please!"

"We have enough patients to take care of right now! You'll just have to wait! Keanna—get him _out _of here!"

The assistant—Keanna, hesitated, "Alard, we should see what he needs."

The stocky man, Alard, shook his head. "He'll have to wait like everyone else. Get him out of here before he disturbs our patients!"

Keanna sighed and nodded, going back to trying to get Bofur to leave. Again, he squirmed away from her grip and stepped closer to Alard.

"There isn't _time _to wait!" He shouted back. The man seemed shocked at the tone of Bofur's voice, like it was the first time anyone had ever contradicted him. His face hardened in an instant.

"He had a head injury! He's bleeding excessively and I cannot stop it!"

"How did he get injured?" The man asked in an irritated manner.

Suddenly, Bofur was at a loss for words. He searched the floor for an answer. No one was likely to believe him if he said that his cousin took an axe to the head and was still alive.

"_Well?!" _Alard yelled after Bofur didn't speak for a few seconds.

"We were in the woods when we got ambushed by Orcs and Wargs—"

"Skip to the point boy!" He interrupted.

"An Orc threw an axe while we weren't looking." Bofur growled through clenched teeth. "The axe hit my cousin's head, and it's embedded in his skull, it's bleeding and—"

"And he's still alive?" Alard scoffed.

"Yes, well… Last- last I checked."

"Is this a joke?" Alard asked. "I've had enough of you if you really expect me to believe such a story. Out with you boy!"

Bofur was steaming with anger, and wanted to lunge forward and attack the man, but he knew that would amount to nothing. It was no use getting through the thick skull of the man.

"Wait!" Another person said, breaking through everyone else's voices. An old dwarf pushed his way in front of Alard, and stepped towards Bofur. He put a hand on Keanna's shoulder.

"I'll handle this." He said softly, but quickly. "Tend to the other patients."

Keanna looked back and forth between the two dwarves before nodding and walking back to Alard, who was gaping at them.

The old dwarf adjusted the bag on his shoulder and opened the front door. He then turned to Bofur. "I'm Oin. Let's go save your cousin."

Bofur felt a wave of relief wash over him as both of them exited the building together.

"Thank you." He managed to say, although he wasn't too sure if the medic could hear him.

Oin nodded towards the door "Follow me, quickly. If what you say is true, we don't have much time."

Bofur followed without question, feeling excited that someone had actually taken him seriously. Though he was confused why Oin had chosen to believe what he said. He was relieved, and chose not to question anything at the moment. They hurriedly navigated through the streets, turning left and right down lanes until they come to a stable on the edge of the town. Oin opened the doors and walked to the side of what Bofur presumed to be his own pony.

"Was it just your cousin that was injured? Or is there someone else in the woods along with him that's hurt too?" Oin questioned.

"My brother is with him, but he's not injured. Though I don't know what could happen while I'm gone."

"You know how to ride don't you?" Oin asked, motioning to the ponies.

"Yes." Bofur answered.

"Does your brother?"

"Well enough."

Oin nodded and mumbled something inaudible. He moved over to the other ponies in the stable and put on their saddles and bridles, as well as his own.

"Okay, get on the pony." He ordered, motioning to a white pony, and Bofur obeyed. He mounted a grayish-white pony, and he patted its long and furry neck reassuringly.

Oin led the two ponies out of the stable, and Bofur followed right after. Oin held the lead in one hand as the pony beside the one he was riding walked next to him. The pony's head was about level with where Oin was sitting.

"Do you remember where he was? Because you'll have to lead me there." Oin asked, but it sounded more like a statement.

Bofur nodded hesitantly. "Yes, I think so."

"I'm ready when you are, lad." Oin answered.

Bofur clucked and the horse and began to trot. He looked towards the edge of the woods as the horse trotted along, searching for the place he remembered barging through, until he found the location.

"Follow me!" He called, leaning forwards on the horse a little as he kicked the pony's sides lightly.

Almost immediately the pony began to go faster and faster, until it was bolting down the stony path. The land quickly turned into a grassy road as they drew closer to the woods, and Bofur watched as the land flew by when he was on the pony, compared to the long time it took him to run this distance. Suddenly, he realized how tired he felt, and he was thankful for sitting, even if the road was bumpy, and he was constantly being lifted off the saddle each time the pony took a step. Bofur turned around and looked to see if Oin was behind him, and sure enough the old dwarf was there, leading both his ponies along at a similar pace. Bofur found the opening off the forest, and lead the pony through with some ease. It seemed to have somewhat of a difficult time trailing through the bushes, but other than that it was moving with along relatively fast. He went in a straight direction, faintly recognizing the paths he had just run through. The wind made his head feel cold, and that is when he realized that his hat was missing. He kept a hand on the reigns as he felt his strangely bare head. He knew he must've lost it during his tumble down the steep slope. It wouldn't be too hard to find it again.

After some time, the ponies arrived at the slope, and they found another way around, so it was easier and quicker for the animals. Oin's pony went at a slower pace than Bofur's did, seeing how he was leading another one behind himself, and he was carrying a bag around his shoulder. The surroundings looked slightly familiar to Bofur, but he was certain he was going in the right direction, sense he knew he had traveled in a straight direction the whole time.

Another few minutes passed, until they came into a clearing in the woods. It was the same clearing where Bifur, Bofur, and Bombur sat down to break for lunch. Bofur scanned the area desperately, looking for a sign of his ginger-haired brother. Soon enough, he spotted him, and slowed the pony down, until they came to a halt close by.

"Bofur!" Bombur shouted.

Bofur quickly dismounted his pony and ran to him. "I'm here. I got help." He said, and turned around to Oin, who was hastily getting down from his own pony.

"How's Bifur?" Bofur asked; his voice was weaved with worry.

Bombur lead them both to Bifur's body as he spoke. "He's alive, last I checked, which was a moment or two before you arrived. The scarf you used to stop the bleeding wasn't working, so I searched the bags we brought and found some bandages and used those. I'm pretty certain the bleeding slowed down at least, I've only had to change the bandages once so far."

Oin spoke for the first time in a while, "You said it was an Orc axe?" He asked, reaching into his bag.

"Yes." Bofur replied, making Oin give a grunting noise of disapproval while shaking his head.

Bofur tried to swallow, but his throat was suddenly bone dry. "Is that bad?"

"Well, those aren't exactly clean."

"Oh." Bofur responded in a meek voice.

Bombur and Bofur stepped out of the way and Oin set to work. He checked the layers of bloody bandages, pursed his lips, and mumbled to himself occasionally about something inaudible. He took out another bundle of plasters, and wrapped it around the already existing ones that covered Bifur's head.

"Why not replace the bandages?" Bombur asked the medic, and Bofur shushed him quickly, not wanting him to interrupt Oin's work.

Oin responded after a few seconds, "If the blood has clotted I don't want to disturb it."

Oin finished in a few moments and stood. "We're going to have to get back to town. He cannot stay here."

"How are we gonna do that?" Bofur questioned.

"We'll have to move him onto a pony." Said Oin as he was leading a pony next to Bifur's body. "But be mindful of the axe. Do _not_ touch the handle." He pointed to Bofur, "You get on right after he does and hold onto him so he doesn't fall forwards.

Bofur grabbed Bifur's feet, and Oin held onto his shoulders. With some difficulty, they lifted the unconscious dwarf onto the pony's saddle, and Bofur hopped on behind him, holding onto his cousin like he was instructed to. Once situated, Oin helped Bombur onto the second pony, and Oin mounted his own. Riding as quickly as he dared to, Bofur set off with a trot, following behind Oin and his brother. He held onto Bifur tightly, hoping with every bit of strength left in him that Bifur would make it home alive.

"You'll be okay, Bifur." Bofur whispered, and it went unheard amongst the noise of everything around them.

_He'll be okay. _He thought to himself repeatedly, but no matter how many times he thought that, he never convinced himself he was right.

**xxxxxxx **

**AN: Hmm… This was the longest thing I've ever written. Would you believe that? 3,025 words. Oh, and sorry for the wait, I've been busy (same lame excuse every time, I know) with SATs for 9****th**** grade, (yes, 9****th**** grade) and I had to study and yeah. So I've been delaying this chapter for a little bit, I had to force myself to write something to get over the dreaded writer's block. URGHH. I hope you liked it though, because I think it's pretty good. (Woah. I actually like my own work? Whaaa?!) Oh, also, the setting for this story is a pain in MY FREAKING BUTTOCKS, because I can't seem to get the setting to be factual to the real deal. Mouse helped me figure this stuff out, So just so you know, the story is set in the Blue Mountains, but just pretend there is a little forest to the side of the Blue Mountains… and there are little towns close by there. That has humans in it. (Please for the sake of my sanity please do that I beg of you) **

**By the way, I read the first chapter to this story again, and realized that Bofur had packed extra bandages for the trip, so you can only imagine how stupid I feel right now that I ruined his beautiful scarf with Bifur blood. And… *gasp* Hatless Bofur! Nuuu! **

**Also, shout out goes to my awesome friend who actually owns four horses, and she knows a lot of important stuff when it comes to them. I flooded her Kik with questions about the horses and asked if the stuff I was saying was accurate, because Google wasn't helping me out too much at this point. I didn't even know what 'clucking' was until I asked her. How sad is that? But yeah, I did learn a whole lot about horses, so yay!**

**Anyways, it's almost two in the morning and I'm tired so I'm off to hit the hay. **

**PS: Can you control a pony while you're behind someone else? I hope so. I didn't ask my friend about that because I was afraid she'd say something like, 'lol no'. **

**PPS: Please Review.**

**-Moose**


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